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Paysage et patrimoine

To build up a ‘bottled garden’
lundi 16 juillet 2012
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GIF

OBJECTIVES

- Professional integration
- Research of the ancient practices and techniques for the transport of tropical plants
- Realization of a product responding to an economic demand.

COMPETENCES

- Knowledge of the rules related to plants’ transportation
- Development of the innovation and document research
- Spirit of initiative.

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CULTURAL REFERENCES

‘Bottled gardens’ make their appearance at the beginning of 1800. The scientist Dr Ward plants a small fern in a demijohn with soil.
By observing that the plant is growing under these conditions, he gets the idea of realizing glass cases for transporting and feeding plants during the long oceanic voyages.
Dr. Ward’s idea is the present response to effective gardening in the areas where either pollution or drought create serious problems. In a demijohn or in a bottle plants can live and create a natural microcosm.

MATERIAL

In order to create a ‘bottled garden’ it is necessary to choose small plants that grow slowly and are moisture resistant (see the list).

-  A bottle or a small demijohn
-  One litre of sand (not sea sand)
-  One litre of chippings
-  One litre of charcoal
-  One litre of heath
-  Some moss
-  Dry wood, pebbles or shells
-  A rubber syringe for watering and cleaning the leaves
-  A natural brush for cleaning the leaves
-  A long wooden pincer
-  A spring pincer
-  A funnel
-  Rolled up paper to extend the funnel
-  A pair of long tweezers

LIST OF PLANTS
-  Acorus gramineus variegatus
- Acorus gramineus pusillus
- Adiantum tenerum wrightii
- Begonia semperflorens
- Caladium humboldtii - caladium
- Calathea micans
- Cissus striata - vitis
- Cryptantus bivitantus minor
- Dionaea muscipula
- Dracaena godseffiana
- Ficus pumila minima
- Hedera helix
- Maranta leuconeura kirchaveana
- Philodendron sodiroi
- Pteris ensiformis Victoriae
- Saintpaulia
- Saxifraga stolenifera
- Selaginella kraussiana
- Sinningia pusilla

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DEVELOPMENT

Technique
-  Clean the inside of the bottle
-  Pour 2cm of sand, 2cm of charcoal and a layer of heath on the bottom with the help of the funnel and paper
-  Draw the diameter of the bottle on a sheet of paper to establish the layout of the plants
-  Put the plants into the bottle after cleansing their roots. Roll up the big ones in a piece of paper to get them through easily and use the long pincer to settle them in the spot designed
-  Accurately cover the roots with heath
-  Spray some lukewarm water on the surface and cover the heath with moss
-  Add small pebbles, shells, sticks, etc. as decoration
-  Water judiciously

Advice

Use pieces of stocking nylon to separate the different layers : chippings, charcoal, sand and heath. T
his way the geological effect will be very interesting. You can even add a small flower.


Association « Artiste No Tahiti"
API Formation Tahiti

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